New Solar Cell Technology

What is a solar cell?

A solar cell is a something that converts sunlight into electricity. The most common type of solar cells are made from wafers of ultra-pure silicon and boron that have been infused with phosphorus in a hot furnace, coated with an antireflection coating, and then fired with metal contacts. Typically they are about the size of a birthday card, but less than half a millimetre thick.

Solar panel systems are of particular interest to individuals in today’s age. Specifically, researchers and scientists who are constantly looking for new ways to make solar panels cheaper, more appealing to everyone and more efficient. There is a new type of solar cell which was inspired by a butterfly, specifically from the wings.

To put this into perspective, there is still a lot of room for enhancement when it comes to solar panel innovation. A new solar cell which was just recently unveiled shows major development when it comes to collecting light. More specifically, the brand-new cell does it two times as effectively as do regular panels, which makes it of significance to lots of individuals. This technology will not appear in consumer-grade solar panels anytime in the very near future, as there is still a great deal of research to be done.

Most solar panels currently utilize thick solar cells. Additionally, they need to be positioned at a particular angle to ensure they gather the most amount of light under any circumstance. This is why most flat roofing systems will never house any solar panels, as setting them up would be rather time-consuming and problematic. Eventually, though, those cells will be changed by thin film solar cells. This brand-new technology is only nanometers thick, which is a significant improvement.

Thin film solar cells are far cheaper and lighter than their predecessors, which makes things even more of interest, but they’ve usually been less efficient compared with the traditional options. That is not the case, mind you, although scientists needed to take some motivation from a not likely source. More specifically, they took a look at the black wings of the rose butterfly and copied its structure. It was a rather unusual approach, to state the very least, although it makes a great deal of sense when looking at the bigger picture.

Thanks to this rather unusual research, we now have thin film solar batteries able to collect light in an even more efficient way. Having these cells absorb more light regardless of their angle opens an entire brand-new set of opportunities that individuals will be eager to check out in the future. The fact that they are also simple and low-cost to make will only bring them to market faster. However, it is still uncertain as to when we may see consumer-grade technology including these thin film solar batteries.

The choice to mimic the rose butterfly is not random either. This species was required to develop in such a manner that its wings ended up being highly efficient at soaking up energy. Though it took countless years to develop this brand-new and improved wing type, it goes to reveal Mother Nature will outmatch human engineering in every possible way for quite a long time to come. That does not imply we can’t find out a thing or two from her, though.

It will be interesting to see how this development impacts the solar panel market as a whole in generating the latest smart home. All companies wish to be first to market when it pertains to this innovation, for apparent reasons. The fact that these panels can produce power effectively throughout the whole day will certainly be of great interest to a great deal of consumers.